EU invests €35m into AI cancer diagnostics
The European Commission has pledged €35 million ($39.2 million) to promote the development of analysis of health images for cancer diagnostics, based on artificial intelligence (AI).
Yesterday, July 9, the Commission launched a call for proposals under the Horizon 2020 programme, the biggest EU research and innovation programme ever, with nearly €80 billion of funding available over seven years (2014 to 2020).
Through the programme, the European Commission is investing a total of €177 million on the ‘digital transformation of health and care’ and ‘trusted digital solutions and cybersecurity in health and care’.
In addition to supporting the development of analysis of health images for cancer diagnostics, the investment will also focus on developing other AI tools and analytics focused on the prevention, prediction and treatment of the most common forms of cancer.
Vytenis Andriukaitis, commissioner for health and food safety, said: “Working together across silos will boost our capacity to better help the patients by sharing and interpreting technological advances in cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment prediction across the EU.”
According to the EU, analysis of health images is one of the most promising fields for applying AI in healthcare.
The aim of the investment is to speed up diagnosis, leading to faster referrals, reducing anxiety for patients and leading to better outcomes.
Proposals should set up and contribute to populating an interoperable repository of health images.
Mariya Gabriel, commissioner for the digital economy and society, added: “Today's investment confirms our strong support in advanced technologies that will shape the future of the health sector in the EU.
“Together with member states, we must put in place a framework that balances individual concerns and health system constraints, while unleashing innovation in healthcare for the benefit of all Europeans.”
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